


it takes patience to find the one

by xxprincessxx



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Best Friends, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:08:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26414665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xxprincessxx/pseuds/xxprincessxx
Summary: Five times Nini needs an excuse to get out of a date, and the one time she doesn't
Relationships: Ricky Bowen & Nini Salazar-Roberts, Ricky Bowen/Nini Salazar-Roberts
Comments: 11
Kudos: 88





	it takes patience to find the one

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone!! this idea came to me randomly lmao, i hope you enjoy!

_**One.** _

Nini took a bite of her pasta as she listened to the man in front of her drone on and on about his day at the office. The girl has not been able to say a word since they’ve put in their orders with the waiter.

As of lately, Nini’s been feeling a little, not necessarily lonely, but left out. Nearly all of her friends are in relationships, and after her last boyfriend, she’s been having a tough time trying to find the right guy. She wasn’t looking just to date, but looking for her person. The person she could picture living her life with, the person that made her a better person.

Having complained to one of her co-workers the other week, mentioning how her movie nights with her friends consisted of cuddling between the couples. While Nini usually just sat off to the side, sometimes with Ricky who was also single, but when he wasn’t there she usually had to fend for herself. Jessica, her co-worker, came in the following week suggesting she go out with this one guy that she knows from her days back in college. And Nini being desperate enough, she agreed.

It was her first real date since her ex-boyfriend, and Nini had spent all day freaking out about it. She called up Kourtney, needing help in finding the perfect outfit, the pair settling on a beautiful red dress that complimented her skin tone beautifully. But her friend couldn’t stay on the phone long, because her and her boyfriend were heading out to meet his family for some birthday or anniversary.

The girl, still as nervous as ever, called up Ricky. He helped her majorly calm down and relax, telling her if she needed him to just call or text, reminding her that it didn’t have to be the perfect date. That everyone has their flaws, and if he didn’t think she was worth it, then why should he be?

And she hated to admit to him because of how cocky he can get, it definitely helped her calm down.

But now, sitting in front of Colin, as he talked about his work she couldn’t help but wonder if he realized how much he talked about himself. She’s probably gotten in a few words, mostly words of acknowledgment. She felt like he was talking to a wall, listening to himself bounce whatever he’s babbling about back to him.

As he started a new story about one of his co-workers, and that was when Nini realized she couldn’t take it any longer. It was like she wasn’t even there, and he just kept talking and talking about himself. At this point, she’s convinced he’s so in love with himself that he’s already in a relationship with his goddamn reflection.

Nini wipes her mouth with a napkin, clearing her throat in the process, finally gaining his attention, “I just need to use the restroom, if you’ll excuse me.” She smiles, taking her purse along with her.

As she finds the bathroom, she pulls her phone out of her purse, dialing Ricky’s number praying that he answers. From what she recalls, he mentioned his plans were just staying the night, maybe try and beat the new Halo game he bought the other day.

“ _Nini?_ ” The man’s voice rings through the phone, nearly startling the brunette.

“Ricky, oh my god, thank fuck you picked up.” She responds, walking to the last mirror furthest from the door. “I need you to come get me. Please.”

She stared at herself in the mirror, noting her hair was a little messier than when she had left the apartment, probably from running her hands through it so many times out of boredom. Her lipstick was starting to fade as the night went on, she couldn’t help but think about a few hours earlier she was freaking out about this stupid date, and now she was willing to do anything to get out of it.

“ _Wait, what?_ ” Ricky’s voice immediately transitioned to an angry tone, “ _What did he do? I swear to god if he laid a fi-_ ”

“Ricky!” She nearly shouts, putting her hand over her mouth having startled herself at the volume of her voice, “He didn’t do anything. He’s just so full of himself, and I just need an excuse to get out of here.”

Suddenly there was a ton of shuffling over the phone, she heard Ricky grunt, she assumes he hit something with the sharp intake of breath that followed it. “ _I’ll be there in 15_.” He mutters into the phone, before hanging up.

The brunette looks down at her phone a little confused, but decides to just go with it. She makes her way back to the table, sending Colin a polite smile as she takes her seat once more. Immediately grabbing her fork, and twirling her pasta around.

“So, Nini, Jessica told me you like kids? I used to work at summer camps throughout college, it definitely helped…” Nini couldn’t bother herself to listen, knowing he was just going to keep droning on about whatever story he’s concocted up in his head.

Another ten minutes go by, Nini bouncing her leg up and down anxiously awaiting Ricky’s arrival. The brunette nodding along to Colin’s boring stories, as she tries to calm herself down. Not quite sure what Ricky had in mind, because knowing that boy, he was going to make a scene instead of simply texting her that he was outside waiting for her.

As Colin starts up another story, they were interrupted by the curly-haired boy she had been waiting for.

“Nini! Oh my god!” The boy practically runs over to her, “Kourtney’s in the hospital!” He nearly trips on his way over to her.

“What?” Nini blinks, setting her fork back down on the table.

“Yeah, she got into an accident on her way home from work, and she needs surgery. We’ve been trying to call you all night. You’re her emergency contact and the doctor said we can’t make any decisions until you’re there.” He rushes out, nearly out of breath from the running and the sped-up speech.

Nini was certain that he was faking the lack of air trying to make its way into his lungs, she could easily tell by the way that his hands weren’t shaking. And the fact that he ran for track all throughout high school and college. It was clear that high school theatre aided the boy in his acting skills being presented that evening.

“Fuck, is she okay?” She asks, Ricky handing him a glass of water to help him with his ‘laboured breathing.’

“No clue.” He takes a large gulp from the cold beverage, “They won’t tell us anything.”

Turning her head to Colin, “I am so sorry. Is it okay that I go? I’m basically her only family here.” She sends him a sympathetic smile.

He shakes his head, “No, of course not. You can’t control these things.” He stands up, making his way around the table as Nini pulls her purse higher up onto her shoulder. Colin pulls Nini in for a quick hug, “I’ll text you.” He presses a kiss to her cheek, before pulling away keeping his eyes trained on the girl.

A little uncomfortable from the interaction, Ricky clears his throat. “Sorry to cut your evening short.” Ricky apologizes.

“It’s okay. Sending my best to your friend.” He smiles, waving at the pair. Nini desperate to get out of there as soon as she could, she practically dragged Ricky out of the restaurant.

“He seemed nice!” Ricky jokes, as Nini pulls him down the street.

Nini scoffs, smacking his chest, “Shut the fuck up. He was so full of himself, I’ve probably said ‘Oh, really, that’s cool’ fifteen times tonight. And that’s all I literally said.” She huffs, slightly irritated.

“It’s okay, dating is hard.” He wraps his arm around Nini, pulling her in the direction where he had parked his car. “Especially when you’re getting back into it after a long time. You’ll find the one, I’m sure of it.” He reassures her.

Nini leans into his side further, wrapping her arms around his torso in a tight hug. “Thank you, Ricky.” She mutters into his shoulder, “Not just for saying that, but for picking me up too.”

Ricky chuckles, wrapping his other arm around the small brunette, “I’ll pick you up anywhere, anytime. Just say the word.”

“Can we get ice cream?” She pouts up at him, “Maybe go to that mountain top view and look at the stars or something. I don’t think I want to go home just yet.”

“Of course, butterfly.” He whispers, using his nickname for her, having been using it ever since either of them could remember. He pulls her into his chest tightly once more before opening up the passenger door, waiting for her to slide in as they drive off to their favourite place in the city.

* * *

_**Two**_.

“So,” Nini drags the syllable out, feeling a little uncomfortable with the boy sitting next to her.

Nini went out on another date, this time some guy that she had met on Tinder. He was hilarious on the app, and even when texting each other. Constantly joking around about anything and everything, and Nini was sure that this date was going to go a lot better than her previous ones.

Unfortunately for Nini, she didn’t think anything could top Colin. However, unlike Colin, Noah didn’t talk about himself. He barely talked at all for that matter. Nini seemed to be running out of things to talk about to the point she asked him what his favourite piece of furniture was.

It was so incredibly awkward, Noah didn’t even seem that interested. He has probably looked at her only a handful of times, as they made their way around one of the parks in the city. Nini tried teaching him how to skip a few rocks, but he didn’t seem to be too enthralled by that either.

She couldn’t help but wonder where the funny, hilarious boy she was texting had gone. Despite how rude it may sound, she wanted to talk to that guy. The one that made her laugh her head off and giggle, someone that made her insides goo up. That was not the boy sitting beside her on the park bench as they stared out into the water.

“This is probably really weird to ask, but uh,” She twists her fingers together, deciding to just to be honest with the guy. “Do you do this often?” She waves vaguely between the two.

“Uh, you mean dates?” He asks, his eyes trained on the water in front of them, “No. Is it that obvious?” He nervously chuckles to himself.

The brunette’s eyes widened slightly, shaking her head vigorously, “No, not at all. I’m new to the dating scene myself, actually. My ex-boyfriend was a jackass, and left me for some random girl he met at the club. So, getting back into dating has been a little hard for me.”

The dark-haired boy nods along, but still remains silent. The only sounds were the chattering people walking pass them, the rustling of the leaves of the tree and the water streaming by as it followed its current. A few ducks quacking at each other as they swim by, Nini couldn’t help but chuckle, despite this being probably the most awkward date she’s ever been on.

Wanting to give him the benefit of a doubt, she continues trying to engage him in more conversation. But once it became abundantly clear that even if he was incredibly interested in her, he was completely blowing their chances. With the lack of communication, both verbally and nonverbally, she decides she’s had enough.

Slyly, she pulls her phone out, muttering about having to answer her moms since they’ve been a little frantic about her whereabouts; which was a complete lie on her part. She quickly sends Ricky a text, since he was the only one aware about this date.

Earlier that month, Ricky helped Nini set up her Tinder account, which none of their other friends were aware that she had. Ricky only promised to help pick out photos and a bio if she promised that she was being safe 100% of the time.

That meant, Ricky was given permission to track her phone whenever she went out with whatever guy she was planning on meeting. She had to text each time she got to a new location and when they were returning home. And he got to stalk their social media platforms, making sure she wasn’t going out with major catfishes that were planning on kidnapping her.

Originally, Nini thought his requests were ridiculous. But the longer she thought about it, she began to realize Ricky was just overly concerned about her safety. So, eventually she agreed, despite thinking that tracking her phone was just a tad bit dramatic. She let it slide, knowing he’d never actually abuse that access. Plus, it was much better than Ricky following her in his car, making sure he was a few paces behind, which was what he threatened to do if she didn’t allow the phone tracking.

_Nini_ : code purple.

_Ricky_ : what the fuck is a code purple?

_Nini_ : get me the fuck out of here, it’s so fucking awkward.

_Nini_ : Ricky, please.

_Ricky_ : on my way.

As she reads Ricky’s text message, she tucks her phone back into her purse turning to look at Noah. His head was tilted up at the sky, staring up at the clouds like he was doing literally anything to avoid having to look at her.

Noah points up at the sky at some point, “That looks like a castle.” He mutters.

Nini tilts her head, looking at the sky as well trying to see what he was pointing at, but she couldn’t see anything. They all looked like blobs to her, and she couldn’t help but frown. Nini wasn’t a cloud watcher, it was never her thing. Kourtney and Seb loved to cloud watch, and constantly invited Nini when they would go, but there came a point where she had to decline because all she could ever see were blobs of white clouds.

“I don’t see anything.” She admits.

The dark-haired boy sighs, keeping his eyes trained up at the clouds as Nini brings her attention back to the path where people were walking by. Some people looked at her and Noah curiously, wondering why the boy’s head was tilted back and she had a grumpy expression on her face. But her clear bitch face made no one want to approach them.

“Oh my god, Nini?!” Ricky’s voice booms across the park.

Both her and Noah turn towards the voice, seeing Ricky make his way over to the pair. Nini stands up from her spot on the bench to greet the smiling idiot, Ricky pulling her in for a tight hug.

“What are you doing here?” She asks, her voice raising an octave out of habit.

“Just visiting my dad,” He points over his shoulder vaguely, “I’m actually leaving tonight. They need me back at work on Monday. And you know how jet lag is, I love living in Australia but I do miss home sometimes.”

The brunette tried her best to keep in her laughter, wondering where in the hell Ricky had made up this story. Glancing over to Noah who was sitting quietly on the bench, Ricky sticks his hand out for him to shake. “I’m Ricky, friend of yours?” He asks, turning to Nini.

“Something like that.” She presses her lips together, shooting Ricky a sharp glare.

“Friend of Nini, I have a major favour.” Ricky retracts his hand from Noah’s hold, “I’m flying home tonight, and I was wondering if I could steal Nini for a few hours? I haven’t seen her in ages, and I’ve missed my little butterfly.” He pokes Nini’s side, gaining a loud giggle from her.

Noah shakes his head frantically, “Not at all! I, uh, I have to get going anyways. It was nice meeting you.” He gets up from his spot on the bench, barely waving a goodbye as he makes his way back towards the parking lot.

Nini sighs, collapsing onto the park bench, putting her head in her hands as she leans over on her knees. Scratching at her scalp a little irritated, not quite sure what to do. Ricky takes a seat next to her, running his down her back comfortingly.

“What’s on your mind?” He asks quietly.

“Are you sure dating is supposed to be this hard?” She mutters, turning her head to look at him.

Ricky shakes his head, “Nins, it’s not supposed to be hard. But when you find the one for you, then it’s easy. Getting there, that’s the hard part.”

Fixing her posture, she leans back onto the bench, Ricky brings his hand back into his lap. The brunette tilts her head as she stares at the lake in front of them, not minding the silence. For once it wasn’t awkward, it was comfortable.

Huffing out a breath, she admits, “I want to skip the hard part.”

Unable to keep in his laughter, he lets out a loud chuckle surprising Nini. The small girl punches his leg lightheartedly, to which Ricky puts his arm around the girl’s shoulder shaking her body slightly.

“We all want to skip the hard part.” He shrugs, “But once you find him, you’ll realize it was worth it.” He looks down at the brunette in his arms, a small glint in his eye, not quite sure why her heart picked up in pace.

“I hope so.”

* * *

_**Three**_.

A wide grin falls on Nini’s face as Evan recounts a story from the other day with his sister. Nini couldn’t help but coo at the fact that he and his sister do things together, unable to help but wonder what it would be like to grow up with a sibling.

Ever since she could remember, she knew she wanted to have more than one kid. Having grown up an only child herself, she wanted her children to have someone they can talk to when they couldn’t talk to her. Don’t be mistaken, she absolutely loved that it was just her and her moms, but sometimes she wished she had an older sister to steal clothes from or an older brother to be overly protective and her be annoyed by it or a younger sister to give advice to.

“That’s cute! I would’ve loved to come from a big family.” Nini smiles, as she leans against the couch, the pair having gone bowling and were currently talking over shared nachos and beer.

“No, I’m jealous of you!” Evan knocks her hand lightly, “No siblings? Two moms? That’s like the life I could only dream of. Instead I had to deal with sharing everything with all of my siblings since I’m the oldest, and a dad that’s never there basically making me the father figure. He’s actually probably at the bar across the street.” He jokes.

Nini sucks in a sharp breath, not really quite sure what to say, forcing out a fake laugh nonetheless. Deciding to let it pass, hoping it just was something that she could get let slide, even just for the night. However, as the night went on Nini started to realize that Evan wasn’t exactly who she thought he was going to be.

The other week, Nini had met Evan at one of the events she was in charge of at the local school. In her free time, she liked to volunteer at the school, getting to know some kids and helping out as much as she could. They were having a small fair for the students at the school, and Evan just so happened to stop by Nini’s booth with his youngest sister. The pair got to talking, which led to Evan asking Nini out on a date.

After that day, they texted on and off, both a little busy with their schedules. Nini was busy working as their county’s veterinarian, while Evan was busy with school having gone back to study business.

Evan began to express his envy towards Nini’s complete assurance of her future, while he was still up in the air about things. And Nini couldn’t help but notice nearly everything she would mention, he would have an envious comment to return back to her. And something about that didn’t quite sit right in her.

She wanted someone that would take her for all that she is. No matter her career, her family life, her friends, even her love for charity work. She was looking for someone that wasn’t constantly trying to compare themselves to her. In her opinion, she didn’t think she even deserved to be compared to, mostly due to the fact that she’s the complete opposite of perfect.

There were so many things about her life that she would change. But, at the end of the day, she couldn’t change the past. It’s what she decides to do with her future that matters.

Watching as Evan heads over to the rack of bowling balls that were being spit out, deciding to do one more game before heading out. Nini whips her phone out of the pocket, sending Ricky a quick text.

_Nini_ : stardust.

After her date with Noah, Nini and Ricky had put a system in place for when she needed help getting out a date. She didn’t have to tell him what was going on, that all she had to do was text him a simple word and he’ll come running.

It was a silly word, but they were both lying underneath the stars one night. Pointing out stars that shone brighter than others, as Nini mentions a date she had coming up and was scared that it was going to end up like the last few. Whether it’d be a bust or so incredibly terrible that she needed a reason to dip out early. So, Ricky suggested that they come up with a word that he knew he had to come pick her up. And, they had thought of stardust, being underneath the stars and all.

Deciding to tuck her phone away as soon as Evan started approaching her after hitting barely four pins down. She’ll admit, Evan wasn’t a great bowler, but she didn’t mind it. Actually, she thought it was kind of cute for the first little while before he started pouting about the fact that she had gotten three strikes in a row.

Growing up she was part of this bowling league for one season; Ashlyn, EJ and Ricky needed a fourth member to complete their team. And Nini had a ton of natural talent, none of them quite realizing it until they were out on the lanes. She was phenomenal, sue her.

After a few more turns, not quite sure how much time had passed since she texted Ricky. Nini gets up to take her turn, shooting Evan a small smile before making her way to pick out her ball.

Casually she throws the ball, immediately checking her nails after having felt a rather uncomfortable pull on her middle finger. Making sure she didn’t rip a nail, she turns back around completely forgetting to check how many pins she knocked down.

“Whoa! You’re a natural!” Ricky walks up to her, pointing behind her, the brunette finally realizing she knocked every single one of the pins down. “I’ve been watching for a little while, and you’re really good, you should come play in the league some time.” He compliments, sending the girl a wink.

“I, uh, thanks.” She smiles sheepishly, knowing that Evan was clearly watching their conversation. “I actually played with a league once, but that was years ago.” She blushes, walking back to her seat.

Ricky chuckles, “We’re about to start up a game, and one of our members called in, bailing on us for work. You’re more than welcome to join us, we could use a fourth member.”

Glancing her head over Ricky’s shoulder to Evan, “I would love to. But, I’m actually-”

“Why don’t you play Nini?” Evan interjects, “I suck anyways, and my sister just texted me. She needs a ride home from some stupid party, and by her texts she’s probably completely hammered. Fucking teenagers.” He rapidly texts his sister back on his phone.

Ricky glares at the boy, turning back to look at Nini, ‘Seriously?” He mouths.

Nini rolls her eyes in response, nearly causing Ricky to burst out into laughter. He regains his composure, breathing out his laugh as he looks to Nini to respond to the boy that she was on the date with.

“If you’re sure.” Nini gets up, walking over to Evan grabbing her purse.

“Completely. My fucking sister is so dumb, you would think she could figure out what an Uber is at 16.” He lets out a sarcastic laugh, “I don’t mean to cut the date short, but I had fun, Nini. I’ll text you about another date.” He mentions, before pulling her in for a quick hug.

“Okay, yeah.” She pats him on the back, pulling out of the hug, “Bye.” She mutters, as he makes his way out of the bowling alley.

Ricky plops down on the couch, Nini immediately drops herself into the space between his open legs, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly. Tucking her head into the space between his head and his shoulder, she lets out a straggled breath.

Immediately, Ricky’s arms wrap around her waist, making sure she doesn't fall. He shifts, as he places her in his lap, rubbing one of his hands down her back comfortingly. “What’s wrong?” He asks, quietly.

“He made me feel like shit.” She mumbles into his skin, feeling tears prick her eyes.

His grip on her tightens, “What did he do?” He grits his teeth, anger begins to boil up inside of him.

Nini shakes her head, lifting it from his shoulder, wiping at her eyes making sure no tears had fallen. “He was just so jealous of everything I did. He made me feel like I shouldn’t be as successful as I am. And, like he couldn’t stop comparing our lives. Like, is it so bad that I’m a driven hard working woman?” She mutters.

“Of course not, Ni.” He frowns, “It’s one of the things I love about you. That no matter what you do, you aim to finish it. And that all you ever want to do is to make other people happy, I see that with the way you talk about your patients' owners. You love them, and you love to see them smile.”

“I clearly didn’t make him happy.” She huffs.

Ricky licks his lips, tilting his head to the side. “Maybe not, but that doesn’t matter. You don’t even know him, you don’t have an obligation to him. Plus, you make me happy.”

Unable to help herself, she sends him a shy smile, a blush beginning to creep up on her cheeks. Suddenly realizing their compromising position, she shifts to sit back on the couch instead of his lip. Their arms still remained around each other, Nini’s more of a loose hold on him, one hand making its way back into her own lap.

Turning to notice how much time was left with their lane, she turns to Ricky. “Wanna play a game?” She asks.

“You’re going down Roberts.” He laughs, rushing to get up as he resets the game over at the counter.

Nini giggles as she watches her best friend point over to their lane, a charming smile graced his face. She admires that no matter what Ricky was doing, he dropped everything to come and help her. And she knew that if the roles were reversed, she’d do exactly the same thing.

As Ricky comes back, a pair of bowling shoes in hand. He takes a seat next to Nini, muttering about something that she didn’t really quite catch. Ricky changes the name on the display after tying up his shoes, glancing at the ball options.

Immediately Nini walks up to him, not quite realizing that she was walking over until she was behind him. She wraps her arms around his torso tightly, pressing her lips into his shoulder, not quite able to hook her chin over it due to their height difference.

“You make me happy too.” She murmurs.

* * *

_**Four**_.

“Another day, another crappy date.” Nini mutters to herself, as she washes her hands after using the bathroom.

Nini had gone out with a guy that she had met on her way out of her dance class just the other week. On Thursday evenings, Nini teaches ballroom dancing to kids from four to eight years old. Usually, Gina tags along to help Nini seeing as she teaches the older age group just down the hall, but that particular evening Gina had to cancel having gotten sick.

So, Curtis ended up catching Nini as she was packing up her things. Claiming to have seen her a few times, and decided to shoot his shot and ask her out. Which led to the pair at this karaoke bar across town. It wasn’t the worst date, far from it in Nini’s opinion. They just didn’t seem to have anything in common.

As Nini finishes up, drying her hands. She heads back over to the mirror, determined not to text Ricky this time, knowing this date didn’t warrant an excuse out. Continuing to delay her return, she taps a bit more lipstick on her lips and flattening her hair. Pulling her phone out of her purse, she opens up her Snapchat, sending a quick photo of her in the bathroom; captioning it ‘I think I look cute.’

In less than a minute after sending it, she gets a call from none other than Ricky. Nini chuckles, picking up the phone, knowing she should be leaving the bathroom soon. Bringing the phone up to her ear, Nini barely had time to answer before Ricky started speaking.

“ _You do_.”

“What?” Nini asks confused, tapping at her lip fixing her lipstick that went out of the line.

“ _You look really cute_.” He compliments, “ _So, how’s your date?_ ”

Nini could practically see Ricky wiggling his eyebrows at her, as he does god knows what on a Saturday night. At his compliment, Nini felt her cheeks begin to flare up immediately, an indication of her being flustered. Sometimes she hated that he could rile such a reaction from her.

The brunette sighs, deciding to ignore his compliment and answer the latter half. “I mean we have nothing in common. The only good thing about tonight is that I get to sing karaoke.” She runs her fingers through her hair, “Look, Ricky, I should go. I’ve been in the bathroom far too long to be considered me just peeing. Bye, I’ll see you tomorrow or something.”

And before Ricky could say anything else, she hung up the phone. Taking one more breath before exiting the bathroom, plastering on the fakest smile she could muster up. Approaching Curtis once more, taking a seat next time as he rifles through the song pages.

“Are you going to sing?” Nini asks, knowing neither of them have gotten a chance to sing something since they’ve arrived.

The red-headed man shrugs, “I was thinking about it. I’ve never been much of a singer.” Nini nods, pressing her lips together for a moment as she brings her drink to her lips.

It was going to be a long night.

After a few more songs, both of them taking a turn at the mic, Nini talked about her work life. Curtis was extremely interested in her work, the boy having grown up being completely in love with any animals. He grew up on a farm, and was actually friends with Seb when they were growing up before Curtis moved away for school.

Despite the nice conversation, Nini knew there wasn’t going to be a second date with him. There was something pulling at her heart, telling her that he wasn’t the one. That there wasn’t a point in even trying to pursue something, because she knew at the end of the day there wasn’t anything there.

Neither were paying attention when the next singer came on stage. The brunette was far too engrossed in flipping through the song book, while Curtis was scarfing down his burger. That was until a certain curly-haired boy that stood in front of the table, a mic in hand taking Nini’s hand slowly.

The notes of the song suddenly started flooding into her ears, and instantly Nini’s cheeks flared up once more that night as she realized what song Ricky was practically serenading to her. The brunette glances around the room noticing everyone’s eyes were on her, including Curtis. Bringing her hand to her cheek, feeling how hot it was, Ricky takes in a breath before starting up on the chorus once more.

“ _'Cause it's a beautiful night, we're looking for something dumb to do. Hey baby, I think I wanna marry you. Is it the look in your eyes or is it this dancing juice? Who cares baby, I think I wanna marry you._ ” He looks straight into her eyes, Nini immediately noticing the mischievous look.

As Ricky finishes the song, he walks around the table getting down on one knee, “I’m sorry for everything, Nini. Please take me back. You don’t even have to marry me, I want to fix this. Fix us. Please, baby, please.” He begs, a ring in hand, one that she recognizes from her collection, having left it at his house after making cookies for a bake sale last week.

“Ricky, I’m on a date.” She tries to keep a serious face, his amused look not leaving his eyes.

What surprises Nini next was Curtis placing a gentle hand on Nini’s shoulder, “Say yes.” Before Nini could question him further, he continues, “We both know there won’t be another date. That this wouldn’t extend to anything more than friends. So, say yes.” He encourages, taking a few steps back.

Nini almost bursts out into laughter, not quite sure what to think. The fact that her date was practically handing her over to her apparent ex-boyfriend. Slowly, Nini stands up, a little embarrassed given all the eyes on him.

“This is your last shot,” She keeps her eyes trained on him, willing her acting skills from high school to come to light. “I can’t keep letting my heart be broken by you.” She says, lifting her shoulder slightly.

“I promise you, we’ll work on it.” He gets up from his kneeling position, pulling Nini in for a tight hug. “I promise you, I’m all in.”

Reaching up to whisper into his ear, “You really had to go all out, didn’t you?”

Ricky chuckles, “But of course my little butterfly.” He begins to pull back, pressing a kiss to her temple before finally pulling away from the hug completely. Sliding the ring on Nini’s finger, since it was actually hers. A few cheers were heard around them, as onlookers watched the little ‘proposal’ that just happened.

As Nini turned back to apologize to Curtis, he was out of sight. The brunette sighs, Ricky immediately recognizing the sigh he pulls her out of the karaoke bar. Keeping his arm around her as they walked down to the Taco Bell down the street.

Sitting across from each other in one of the booths in the empty restaurant, Ricky going on and on about his latest client. Nini wasn’t quite listening to boy ramble on, cutting him off with a question Ricky was completely thrown off by.

“Am I undateable?” She asks, leaning her elbows on the table fiddling with the wrapper of her taco.

Not letting him question, she continues, “I mean I don’t think I’m picky. But like, I’ve gone out with Conceited Colin, Nervous Noah, Envious Evan, now what? Can’t see me as more than friends Curtis?” She huffs, slumping her shoulders.

“Nini, you’re not undateable.” She keeps her gaze on the table, “Those guys are setbacks. We all have them, you know I did. Just don’t focus too much on it, okay? You’re a beautiful woman, you’re smart and funny, and anyone would be lucky to get a chance to date you. Don’t beat yourself up, butterfly.”

For the third time that night, Ricky made her cheeks burn up. Drawing her lip between her teeth for a moment, “I’ll try not to.” She hums, taking a bite of her taco. “I told you, you didn’t have to come. I could’ve dealt with another few hours of talking about nothing we have in common.”

“I heard your voice, Ni,” He shakes his head, “You didn’t want to be there. And, I’ll do anything for you. Even pretend to be your fake ex-boyfriend proposing to you, just to get you out of a silly date.”

Nini couldn’t help but giggle, “You didn’t have to.”

“No,” He shrugs, leaning back in his seat, “But I wanted to.”

* * *

_**Five**_.

It didn’t take Nini long to shoot Ricky a text with their favourite code word, repeated a handful of times. Even a few of them were in all caps, not caring how desperate sounding she was towards her best friend.

This time around, the boy she had met up with was another one from Tinder, however he was nothing like he was online. Incredibly rude and it was clear that he was only taking her out because he wanted to take her home that night.

That was not Nini’s style, not one bit.

It wasn’t every date that Nini would text Ricky to come bail her out. Only the incredibly distasteful ones, where she couldn’t take another minute, much less an entire night of the boy. And this time, she’s never been more sure in texting Ricky. Sure, she’s had her fair share of almost texting her best friend to come bail her out, but she felt bad, not wanting to bother him, and just stuck out the rest of the night.

As Nini pretends to be intrigued with whatever Henry was talking about, she lets her mind wander looking anywhere but at the boy. Wondering how she had fallen into such a horrible situation again.

They decided to meet up at the bar a few blocks from her apartment, Nini suggesting somewhere closer to her home in the event she needed to leave early. And by the way he kept trying to sneak his hand onto her leg or on her lower back, she knew she was ready to run home.

As Henry slides another glass of beer over to her, she feels a tap on her shoulder. Immediately, Nini turns around to see her best friend who seemed to have a more upset look on his face than she was expecting. Before Nini could ask what was with the sour face, he began to speak.

“You went on a date, and you didn’t tell me?” He grits his teeth, as he glances between the pair.

Nini widens her eyes, a little confused on what was going on. Unsure of what to do, she gapes at him for a moment, that was until she noticed a little upturn at the corner of his lip realizing that he was playing an act. The brunette stops herself from smiling, using her years of high school theatre, she turns to face him fully.

“How did you find me?” She asks, biting her lip for a moment.

“Gina.” He answers simply, with a shrug of his shoulder. “What were you thinking? Do you know how dangerous this is?”

The brunette huffs, tossing her hair over her shoulder a tad dramatically. “You don’t get to dictate who I see, Ricky. You’re the one that told me to go have fun, meet new people-”

“Not like this!” He nearly shouts.

“Dude!” Henry gets out of his seat, thinking he was going to have an upper hand on Ricky. But as soon as Henry sets foot on the ground, he realizes that Ricky was significantly taller than he was.

Determined not to let that affect him, he squares his shoulders and juts his chin out, “Who the fuck are you?”

Ricky scoffs, tilting his head to the side for a second like he couldn’t believe the shorter man was speaking to him in such a way. “I’m Nini’s best friend. And you are?” Ricky sneers, sending the blond a sharp look.

Quietly, Nini watched on as the two boys sneered at each other. Desperately wanting to jump in between them and pull Ricky out of the bar, however she was also curious as to what was going to happen next. Despite the fact that Ricky was clearly putting an act up, she’s never had two boys arguing over her. She hated to admit it, but it was thrilling.

The blond chuckles lowly to himself, “Now it makes sense.” He utters.

His comment took both Ricky and Nini off guard, “Wait, what?” Nini asks softly.

Henry whips around to look at Nini who was still sitting in her seat, “Your best friend here is jealous.” He jabs his thumb in Ricky’s direction. The boy in question eyes widened in shock, not quite sure he had heard the blond correctly.

“No, I’m not.” Ricky crosses his arms over his chest, scoffing at his accusation.

“Yes, you are.” Henry laughs challenging Ricky, “You’re jealous that she went out on a date without telling you. You’re jealous that she’s seeing other guys, kissing other boys, sl-”

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence.” Ricky pulls at Henry’s shirt with one hand fisting the fabric. Ricky brings him closer to his face, as he practically sneers in his face.

At his sudden reaction, Nini gets out of her seat running to Ricky’s side. “Oh my god, Ricky. Stop.” She pulls on his elbow, trying to get him to back away from the blond man. “Please Ricky, let go. Please.” She begs.

Despite her attempts, Ricky and Henry continue to size each other up. The other daring to make the first move, and unfortunately for Nini, it was Henry that decided to break the silence. Grabbing Ricky’s wrist and tossing it to the side, so it was no longer gripping onto the fabric of his shirt.

“Should’ve slept with her when you had the chance.” Henry nearly laughs, as he eyes the pair. Nini still holds onto Ricky’s arm, her grip on him tightening as she feels the muscles in his arm contract.

Henry was definitely getting to Ricky, and Nini knew she had to do something about it before it got out of hand. Pulling Ricky’s arm as tightly as she could to her chest, determined not to let him go. Begging for Ricky to look at her, because despite this starting out as an excuse to get her out of a bad date, she knew it was Ricky’s turn that needed to get out of there.

Desperately tugging on his arm, repeating his name until he finally looks down at her. His jaw was clenched and brows were furrowed, a clear indication that he was angry. If the balled up fists weren’t a dead giveaway, his facial expression surely was. And for a moment, his gaze softens once it lands on her.

Her fingers digging into his skin, she looks at him with a pleading look. “Let’s go. He’s not worth it. Plus, I called you to get me out of here, not to start a fight.” She begs, her eyes beginning to glaze over, a little scared of what was going to come next.

“To get out of here?” Henry repeats her remark, “Fuck that. Have her. Clearly you want her and she probably wants you. Probably why she tried to keep my hands off of her all night, didn’t want me touching where her precious boy would. So, cut the tiptoeing and have her.” He scoffs, walking off in the other direction, finding some random girl sitting alone and starts chatting her up.

Neither of the pair said a word as they made their way out of the bar. Nini was still holding onto his arm, now with a looser grip, as he guided her further down the street towards his car. He was still clearly angry at the blond man, but wasn’t ready to say anything quite yet. At some point, Nini stops them a few paces away from his car.

The same thought running through her mind, wondering if what Henry had said was true. Nini’s not stupid, she knows how attractive her best friend is. And if she was being honest, she’s always had a small crush on him, but never acted on anything because he’s her best friend. But something inside compelled her into asking something she never thought she would.

“Were you?” Nini blurts out.

“What?” Ricky glances down at the brunette, not quite sure what the girl meant.

Nini sighs, tucking a strand of her now wavy hair behind her ear, as she moves to stand in front of him. Drawing her lip between her teeth for a moment, before continuing, “Jealous. Were you jealous?” She asks.

Running a hand through his curls, his eyes looking anywhere but at her, “At first I thought I was being protective. That I wanted you to be safe, even if you were going on dates that your co-workers or our friends would set you up on. And then at some point, I started to realize it wasn’t just that.” He shrugs, “Nini, you’re my something easy. With you everything just seems to make sense, but all I ever wanted was for you to be happy. So, I took a step back, I let you do whatever you wanted, because that’s what made you happy. But, of course I was jealous. I mean, how could I not be?”

“Really?” Nini couldn’t help but let a smile slip onto her face.

“Really.”

“Well, I guess this only means one thing.” She giggles, as a confused look begins to take place on Ricky’s face. Deciding to continue without giving him a chance to respond, “I know my track record for dates isn’t too hot, but, if you’re interested. Will you go on a date with me?” She smiles.

Ricky barks out a loud laugh, as he places his hands on Nini’s face cradling it gently, “Of course, I’ll go on a date with you, butterfly.”

* * *

_**\+ One.** _

“Where are you taking me?” Nini giggles, as Ricky pulls on her hand.

It had been an entire week since Nini asked Ricky out on a date. But Ricky being Ricky, he wanted to make a big deal of their first official date. So, he decided to plan everything and refused to tell Nini a thing. She even tried bribing Big Red and EJ into telling her his plan, but they both refused.

“We’re almost there, Ni. Just be patient.” He chuckles, his hands on her waist as he guides her to their destination.

“I’ve been waiting how long to go on a date with you? How can I be patient?” She turns her head to look at him despite being blindfolded. A slight pout on her face, not even sure if Ricky was even looking at her.

She feels Ricky’s chest vibrate against her back, his lips make contact with her cheek, “You’re fucking cute.” He laughs, Nini blushes at his compliment the pair stopping in their tracks.

“I know.” She states confidently, causing both of them to erupt in laughter.

As silence envelopes them once more, Ricky slowly takes off Nini’s blindfold. The brunette was faced with a blanket on the ground, a few battery powered tea light candles, a basket which probably had a bunch of her favourite food, knowing Ricky. There was also a bouquet of pink tulips, and a couple of pillows scattered around the blanket. What took Nini aback was that it was in one of their favourite spots of the city.

Overlooking the city, all the cars and lights scattered across their city. The moon and stars shining down on top of them. Turning around to look at Ricky, wrapping an arm around his torso, “It’s beautiful, Ricky.” She murmurs into his shoulder.

Ricky signals for her to sit down, immediately taking the spot next to her. His arm coming around to grab her hand, “This is where I realized I wanted to be the one for you.” He tells her, a soft look taking on his face.

“The night I went out with conceited Colin?” She asks, drawing her lip between her teeth.

“Yeah,” He nods, a low chuckle escaping her lips, “I’ve known a long time. I just didn’t want to get in the way of you being happy.”

Nini shakes her head, “I told you, you make me happy.”

“Well, I know that now!” He jokes, pushing her hand away as he moves to grab the picnic basket.

As they talked over their dinner, Ricky ordered a bunch of sushi from their favourite sushi place in town. And took turns taking bites from the cheesecake that he had packed earlier that afternoon. He glances over to Nini as she grabs her phone, not paying much mind to her, he leans back on his hands staring out at the cityscape.

A sudden buzzing interrupted Ricky’s thoughts, pulling his phone out of his pocket to see Nini’s caller ID and contact photo pop up. A little confused on what’s happening, he glances over to Nini seeing her phone pressed up against her ear.

“What are you doing?” He asks.

“Ricky, I think your phone’s ringing. It must be important. You should answer it, I don’t mind.” A sly smirk made its way onto her face, encouraging the curly-headed boy to answer her call.

His tongue darts out, licking his lips, still confused on why she was calling him when he was sitting next to her. Looking down at his phone, a photo of a beautiful Nini stared back at him, she was standing in the middle of a flower field and a little butterfly landed on her finger. Having thought it was the perfect photo of his little butterfly, he set the photo of her as her contact.

Despite being confused about what was going on, he does as he is told. Sliding his finger across the screen, answering the call. Lifting the phone up to his ear, he looks over at Nini, “Hello?”

“Ricky, oh my god.” She rushes out, staring out at the cityscape, just like Ricky had been doing a minute ago, “So, I’m on this date with this guy, right? And, I’m telling you he’s perfect. He’s so funny and so cute, and we have so much in common. I get all gooey inside when he looks at me and compliments me, I think he might be the one.”

Ricky chuckles as he watches Nini talk about her ‘date’. Her eyes were wide and gleaming with happiness, her cheeks redden as she gushed about the boy beside her, and he simply couldn’t tear his gaze off of her. Thinking that she looked so beautiful, dressed in a red floral dress, and her hair was slightly curled. Turning her head to him for a second as she waits for him to respond, but turns back as soon as she makes eye contact with him.

“Okay, your date sounds perfect. What’s the problem?” He asks.

Nini sighs dramatically, “I don’t know. I feel like everything’s just perfect, but he hasn’t kissed me yet. Do you think I did something?” She asks, tilting her head slightly, the brunette still staring out at the city.

Unable to stop himself, he drops his phone into his lap, pulling Nini’s hand closer to his body. The action caused Nini to fall into his chest slightly, her phone dropping down to the blanket underneath them, “Ricky, I’m on the phone.” She reprimands him, trying to push away.

Shaking his head at his best friend’s antics, he gently takes her chin turning her head to look at him. And as soon as their eyes meet, Ricky smiles down at the brunette as he lowers his head to line up their lips. In seconds their lips collide, slotting against each other perfect.

His hand holding her chin moves to the back of her head, pressing their lips firmer together. His other hand moves to her waist, pulling her closer together. Nini giggles against his lips as her hands make their way, trailing up his chest slowly until they reach to wrap around his neck.

The small girl squeals as Ricky pushes her to lie back. Disconnecting their lips as soon as her back hits the ground, Ricky presses a few kisses up her cheek and down to her jaw. “You know,” he mutters against her ear, “If you wanted to kiss me you could’ve just done it yourself.”

Nini punches his shoulder, causing Ricky to stop, pressing one final kiss to her lips before lying down next to her. Their eyes never leave each other’s, “Am I supposed to do everything?” Nini giggles, “I asked you on a date, I ask you for our first kiss, what’s next?”

“But I took you on the date.” He points out, “I set all this up, I planned everything.”

“Come on, Ricky,” She props herself up, leaning up on her elbow as she looks down at the boy, “That doesn’t count.”

“Fine,” He huffs out a breath, “You wanna know what I’m going to do first?” He asks.

“What?” She asks curiously, not quite sure where Ricky was going with that.

A smirk makes its way onto his face, pushing himself up to plant a kiss on her pink lips once more. “I’m going to be the first one to say I love you.” He places a hand on her waist gently, pulling her slightly closer to his body.

Nini’s gaze softens, smiling widely at the man next to her, “I love you too.”

“I guess I got something right.” He smiles, as he leans in to kiss the girl again, but before their lips connect. “Oh! I almost forgot. Will you be my girlfriend?” He laughs.

Tilting her head back, joining Ricky in laughter. “Of course, Ricky.” She giggles, finally connecting their lips. “I love you, baby.” She mumbles against his lips.

“And, I love you butterfly.”

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! please leave a kudos and a comment, they really keep me going haha
> 
> if you have any prompt ideas send them over to my tumblr @nini-ricky !! i promise i'll try my best to get to them! 
> 
> my schedules a little packed, since school started up yesterday so works will probably be further in between. but i'll do what i can! love you all so much, and i hope you're all doing well! hope to you see you soon xx


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